Real talk: Does anyone actually sit at a pretty vanity table with a special lighted mirror, and scented candles burning in the background, and music playing, and perfect lighting hitting all the good angles while they apply their lipstick or other lip products for the day? — because my usual scenario involves me using the rearview mirror while sitting in my car as it warms up in my dark garage, and putting on whatever I’ve got in my purse in the 30 seconds I have before leaving to take Connor somewhere, and P.S., apparently, three-year-olds have many, many places to be, which is why I’m basically the family Uber driver now.
Anyway, that’s why I’m grabbing something moisturizing with a wash of color 99% of the time (#drylips #priorities), like a balm, a lip tint or a hydrating lip oil, which brings me to the latest love of my lip life by Wander Beauty…
Shine and moisture FTW
The Lip Retreat Lip Oils drench dry lips with moisturizing fruit oils and fatty acids, and they coat that kisser with a shiny finish that feels slightly sticky (but not obnoxiously so). There are four shades to choose from, each with a different degree of vivid intensity, and my favorites are juicy strawberry pink Spa Day, and clear shiny Oasis. Both of them smell and taste a little like vanilla, which I’m cool with.
The angled doe-foot has a pointed tip, so drawing into tight corners with the brighter shades is just as easy to do as it is with the nude colors, and the squishy tube means that I can squeeze every last drop outta the 0.33-oz. $22 tubes.
No parabens, phthalates, synthetic fragrances or mineral oil, and they’re cruelty-free and gluten-free as well.
If you like your tints on the bougie side, a la the Hourglass tinted lip oils or the new NARS lip tints, you’re gonna love these!
I love lip oils…but I do not love kale.
I have no problem eating my veggies, but kale? Eww! I’ve tried all sorts of ways to get myself to like kale over the past few years, but it always tastes like gummy, chewy grass to me, and is therefore my equivalent of low-key punishment. (Give me spinach any old day.)
I don’t mind kale in my beauty products, though, especially when they work as well as the Yes to Carrots & Kale Wipes ($5.99).
Packed with vitamin A from the carrots and vitamin E from the kale, these makeup wipes, which are made from compostable natural cloth, remove everything, even hard-to-remove liner and mascara. My skin feels clean, but not sticky afterwards, and I like how they smell like carrot juice!
Viva la ’80s
One last pressing question… Are you down for an ’80s dance party? I hope you know that the only correct answer to that is “yes.” ?
I’ve been listening to a lot of old-school ’80s Whitney Houston lately because I heard a few lines of I Will Always Love You during the first few minutes of the new Spiderman movie, and HOT DAYUM — if you haven’t heard Whitney in her prime belting inside a big theater, you haven’t lived.
For real! When she was at her peak, her voice was unlike anything out there. Her tone was just so clear and precise, and the way she could effortlessly move through complicated parts of a song, yet make it sound so easy? Amazing.
It’s hard to narrow down my favorite Whitney songs, but these are my “desert island” picks…
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Those lip oils sound amazing! I’m going to order the nude when it’s back in stock on Sephora. I’m not the biggest fan of kale either but one of my local cafes makes a kale salad that is surprisingly delicious. It has an apple cider vinegar dressing and I suspect that it marinates in that and becomes tender. It also has apples and goat cheese which doesn’t hurt!
Well, see… That sounds really delicious! I don’t mind it when other people make kale salads and they spend the time massaging and marinating the kale. LOL! I just don’t like doing it myself.
Maybe I’ll try to reverse engineer a version fo that salad with spinach!
Yes to pretty vanity table, yes to special lighted mirror, ain’t nobody got time fo’ dat to the rest of it. ?
Lip oils are now my jam, so this is exciting. (Burt’s Bees also makes a good one.)
Putting the Burt’s Bees one on my list. (I already have the blush on my wish list too.) 🙂
Kale isn’t so much my jam either but hubs likes it so I occasionally saute a wad of it in garlic and ginger with a little oil. My co-op does make a great salad with shredded kale and dried cranberries and pepitas.
Also, having all the high school flashbacks now with the Whitney videos. One of my best friends had a convertible so we always wanted her to drive (even though she was by far the worst driver of all of us) and whenever Whitney came on the radio we all screeched along!
Remember seeing The Bodyguard in the theater? I’ve never been a Kevin Costner fan, even back then, but boy Whitney could really light it up!
Oh, yeah! I remember that movie!
I *almost* forgot to add I’m Every Woman (CHAKA KAHN!) to my list.
Spinach has most of the same nutrients as kale and is much better imho so I stick to that!
I love lip oils! My skin and lips are hella dry so I need every ounce of moisture I can get.
I prefer spinach, too. Tastes better and is easier to eat!
Regarding lip oils, if you ever get the chance try the Hourglass one. It’s pricey but really good.
Suzanne here in the comments says that the Burt’s Bees one is great, so I’m going to try that one next.
Happy Thursday!
The Burt’s Bees one is nice! Good price. I’ve also been using a non-tinted one by the Versed brand at Target that’s really nice.
I think the squishy tube is genius. I hate thinking of all the wasted product left behind in the packaging (but not enough to get those tiny spatulas and scrape it out). 🙂
We just had our 10 year high school reunion last weekend. And by “10”, I mean “30”. It was all 80s music, all evening. I’m definitely not a fan of most of it, though many of my friends still love it. Agreed 100% on Whitney’s voice. But it would be better for me if she sang songs I actually liked. HAHA! If pressed, I’d probably pick “Didn’t we almost have it all?”. But you’d have to really press me. 😉